Easter Dinner

Nathan and I decided to go the non-traditional route for Easter dinner and focus on whole-plant based foods (aka vegan). Here is what I came up with. We were actually very pleased with how everything turned out.

Here is the world's largest asparagus that I got at the farmers market this week:

Easter Menu:

Ginger Carrot Soup

Sweet Potato Salad with Lemon Dijon Dressing

Cauliflower with Nut Topping

Citrus Asparagus Salad

Vegetable Stuffing

Wild Rice

Raw Fruit Pie

Ginger Carrot Soup (not pictured)

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, pureed
• 1 piece fresh ginger, pureed
• 4 cups chopped and peeled carrots (about 1 1/2 pounds)
• 3 cups vegetable broth

Preparation:

Puree onion and ginger. Saute in large pot. Add carrots and broth and reduce heat to medium. Simmer for about 45 minutes or until carrots are soft. Using a food processor or blender, process soup until smooth.

Cauliflower with Nut Topping

1/2 cup breadcrumbs 1/2 cup nuts  (I used Walnuts) 2 tablespoons dried parsley (could also use fresh) 1 teaspoon paprika  2 pounds cauliflower, cut into bite-sized florets (I used two bags, frozen) 1/2 cup vegetable stock Salt and pepper to taste	1. Combine and process breadcrumbs, nuts, parsley, and paprika in food processor. 2. Place the cauliflower in a skillet with 1/2 cup stock. Let the cauliflower steam until soft, stirring often. 3. Transfer to serving dish and cover with nut topping.

Vegetable Stuffing 

This can be made ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to cook

1 loaf of a hearty bread (mine had seeds, nuts, and cranberries in it) torn into pieces 1 garlic clove, pureed 1 onion, pureed 1 cup peeled and chopped carrots 1 bunch asparagus, finely chopped 1 cup peas  6-7 green onions, finely chopped 1 tablespoon parsley 1 teaspoon oregano salt and pepper to taste 2-3 cups vegetable brot

1. Tear bread  into chunks and toast in oven to harden it up.  2. Preheat oven to 400F (if going to cook it right away). 3. Puree garlic and onion. Add to hot skillet.   4. Add carrots and asparagus and sauté until just tender.  5. Add seasonings.  6.Add peas and green onions and sauté until heated through.  7. Add bread and broth. Stir to combine.  8. Transfer to baking dish, cover, and bake for 30 minutes at 400F.   Add more broth as desired.

Citrus Asparagus Salad

1 large bunch asparagus 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (or a handful of roasted almond slices) 1 can mandarin oranges (fruit and juice) 2 tsp apple cider vinegar 1 tbs dijon mustard salt and pepper to taste	1. Cut asparagus in bite size pieces, and then blanch asparagus in boiling water. Run under cold water to stop the cooking process. 2. Add asparagus and oranges to bowl 3. Mix together the mandarin juice, vinegar, dijon mustard, salt and pepper.   4. Toss dressing with asparagus and sprinkle seeds/nuts over top

Sweet Potato Salad with Lemon Dijon Dressing

2 sweet potatoes 1/2 cup cranberries green onions, finely chopped Sunflower seeds Dressing 1/2 lemon juice 2-3 packets of Truvia (or 1/4 cup sweetner of choice) 3 tbs dijon mustard	1. Cook sweet potatoes in microwave, 4-6 minutes on each side (make sure you make slit in potato before cooking 2. Peel and cut into bite sized pieces 3. In a small pan, cook cranberries until they have softened 4. Chop green onions 5. Assemble salad ingredients in bowl. In separate container, mix dressing 6. Add dressing as desired, and eat

Raw Fruit Pie

For the crust: 12 dates, washed and pitted 1/2 cup walnuts 1/2 cup cashews 1/3 cup almond meal/flour 1 tablespoon vanilla Filling: 2 bananas, sliced 1 cup strawberries, sliced 3/4 cup strawberries, pureed 1/4 cup rasberries 1 can mandarin oranges 1/4 cup blueberries	1. Blend crust ingredients together in food processor 2. Press blended crust ingredients into pie plate.  3.Arrange fruit in this order:bananas, strawberry slices, strawberry puree, rasberries, mandarin oranges, blueberries. 4. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.